Where is Bo Hopkins now? What is he doing today? Biography

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Who is Bo Hopkins?

William ‘Bo’ Hopkins was born in Greenville, South Carolina USA, on 2 February 1942 – his zodiac sign is Aquarius, and he holds American nationality. He’s an actor with more than 130 credits to his name, perhaps still known best for his portrayal of one of the main characters, Joe, in the 1973 comedy movie “American Graffiti”. Written and directed by George Lucas, it also starred Richard Dreyfuss and Ron Howard,the movie follows a group of high school friends as they’re spending their last night together before going off to college; it won nine of the 27 awards for which it was nominated, including five Oscar nominations.

Bo is less active in the film industry today, and has appeared in only a couple of movies in the past decade.

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Early life and education

Bo was raised in Greenville by his adoptive parents, who were infertile; his adoptive father worked in a mill, while his adoptive mother was a housewife. Bo was still very young when he and his adoptive mother watched his adoptive father die from a heart attack, and as they could no longer bare to live in the same house, the two moved, and she subsequently married Davis. Bo and Davis didn’t get along, and he was thus sent to live with his grandparents. When he was 11, Bo learned that his mother had given him up for adoption because she disliked children, however, he met her the following year, and learned that he has a half-brother and several half-sisters.

Bo had problems with the authorities in his teenage years, and upon turning 17, he quit school and joined the US Army, serving in the elite 101st Airborne Division.

He spent some time based in Fort Gordon, Fort Pope and Fort Jackson, and was then posted to South Korea for nine months.

Upon returning, he became interested in acting, and enrolled at Pioneer Playhouse on a scholarship. Bo went on to appear in various plays performed around the US, before he beginning his career on TV.

Roles in TV series

Bo made his debut TV series appearance in the 1966 episode “The Hubcap Caper” of the comedy “The Phyllis Diller Show”, and the following years saw him appear in an episode of various series, such as the westerns “The Virginian” and “Gunsmoke”, and the crime drama “Judd for the Defense”.

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He gained recognition in 1973, when cast to play Eldred McCoy in the drama “Doc Elliot”, created by Lewis John Carlino and Allen S. Epstein, and which starred James Franciscus, Neva Patterson and Noah Beery Jr. It follows Dr. Benjamin Eliot who has moved to Colorado from New York City, and has become the only physician there. The remainder of the ‘70s saw Bo make a guest appearance in an episode or two of various series until his following notable performance, his portrayal of Matthew Blaisdel between 1981 and 1987 in the romantic drama “Dynasty”. Created by Esther Shapiro and Richard Alan Shapiro, it starred John Forsythe, Linda Evans and Joan Collins, and follows the lives of two wealthy families, the Carringtons and the Colbys, both of whom are in the oil business; the series won 25 awards, including a Primetime Emmy, while it was nominated for 67 other awards.

Since then, Bo has won roles in only two TV series, as he has been focused on appearing in movies; these were the mystery crime drama “Murder, She Wrote” in 1992, and the animated family comedy “The Angry Beavers” (voice role) in 2000.

Roles in movies

Bo actually made his debut film appearance in the 1968 crime drama “Dayton’s Devils”, and the following year appeared in three movies: the war adventure “The Thousand Plane Raid”, the action adventure western “The Wild Bunch”, and the action war drama “The Bridge at Remagen”.

Bo gained recognition in 1972, when he portrayed Frank Jackson in the action crime thriller “The Getaway”, directed by Sam Peckinpah, and which starred Steve McQueen, Ali MacGraw and Ben Johnson.

It follows a man who has just been released from prison, and has planned a heist with his wife; the movie won one of the four awards for which it was nominated. A couple of Bo’s other notable performances in the ‘70s were in the 1974 crime drama “The Nickel Ride”, the 1975 thriller drama “The Day of the Locust”, and the 1978 biographical crime drama “Midnight Express”.

In 1984, Bo was cast to play Sheriff Will Stewart, the main character in the horror science fiction thriller “Mutant”, directed by John ‘Bud’ Cardos and Mark Rosman, and which also starred Wings Hauser and Jody Medford. The movie follows two brothers who have discovered that toxic waste is turning the people of a small city into zombies. In 1993, he starred in the romantic western drama “The Ballad of Little Jo”, and in 1997 appeared in the crime thriller drama “U Turn”, which starred Sean Penn and Jennifer Lopez, and won one of the three awards for which it was nominated.

Some of his most notable performances in the 2000s were in the 2001 horror “A Crack in the Floor”, the 2003 crime thriller “Shade”, and the 2006 drama “Open Window”.

Bo ten took a seven-year break from acting, returning in 2013 when invited to portray Coach Morris in the family drama “A Little Christmas Business”. He has since appeared in only two other movies, the 2016 comedy “The Boys at the Bar”, and the 2020 drama “Hillbilly Elegy”, while he’s currently shooting for the upcoming romantic drama “Of God and Kings”.

Other credits

In 2003, Bo produced the crime thriller movie “Shade”, and the same year saw him receive special thanks for the drama film “Dallas 362”.

He has been featured in a number of documentary movies, such as the 1996 “Ben Johnson: Third Cowboy on the Right”, the 2005 “Passion & Poetry: The Ballad of Sam Peckinpah”, and the 2008 short “Sweet 16: Interview with Bo Hopkins, Aleisa Shirley and Jim Sotos”.

Bo has made a guest appearance in numerous talk-shows, including “The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson”, “The Alan Hamel Show”, and “The Mike Douglas Show”.

Awards and nominations

In 1995, Bo received a Golden Boot Award for his general performance as an actor.

Love life and relationships

Bo was 18 years old when he married his first wife, Norma, right after he finished his military service – some sources suggest that they married on 30 October 1959, when he was still 17. She gave birth to their daughter Jane, but as Bo then focused on acting and spent the majority of his time travelling, Norma divorced him on 15 August 1962, and took their daughter with her.

While studying acting at the Pioneer Playhouse, Bo dated Miss Mississippi, but then in 1989, he exchanged vows with the American non-celebrity woman Sian Eleanor Green, who gave birth to their child sometime in the ‘90s. There are rumors circulating the internet claiming that Bo hasn’t been very loyal to his wife, and that he’s slept with several of his colleagues, but this hasn’t been confirmed.

As of September 2021, Bo’s married to his second wife Sian Eleanor Green, and has a child with her, as well as a daughter with his first wife.

Hobbies and other interests

Bo likes to write, and his wife has persuaded him to write his autobiography; he’s currently working on it, and it should be published sometime in 2022.

He was physically highly active during his 20s and 30s, partly because it was important for his career to stay fit. Bo had several training sessions at the gym every week, and followed a somewhat strict diet.

He’s passionate about travelling, and has been all around the world, for both work and pleasure. As well as to various US states, however, he prefers to visit European, African and Asian countries, as he’s keen on learning about different cultures; his dream travel destination is Tokyo in Japan.

He’s a huge lover of animals, and has had many pet dogs and cats.

Bo has his own favorite actors and actresses, some of whom are the late Marlon Brando, the late Robin Williams, and Julia Roberts. A couple of his favorite movies are the franchise “The Godfather”, “Apocalypse Now”, and “Good Morning, Vietnam”.